15th Jan 2025 16:16
(Alliance News) - M Winkworth PLC on Wednesday said it has seen a "strong upturn" in sales agreed as it increased its interim dividend.
The London-based franchisor of real estate agencies said the number of sales agreed rose by 27% in the second half and by 23% for the year as a whole. Completed sales for the full-year rose by 19% compared with the previous year.
It said this was due to the continued decline of the cost of finance during the year.
The company said it expects positive activity to continue in 2025, particularly in the first quarter, as first-time buyers look to complete deals before the end of the stamp duty discount in April.
The firm said it expects 2024 pretax profit to be in line with current market expectations, which it says is GBP2.35 million, compared to GBP2.15 million in 2023.
M Winkworth increased its interim dividend for the fourth quarter, up by 10% to 3.3 pence per share from 3.0 pence year-on-year.
This brings the total ordinary dividend payments for 2024 to 12.3 pence, up 5.1% from 11.7 pence in 2023.
Chief Executive Officer Dominic Agace said: "The positive trends in sales activity witnessed in the second half of 2024 bode well as we enter 2025 and, as a well-balanced sales and lettings business, we are in a good position to take advantage of an increase in sales transactions.
"In 2024, we invested significantly in bringing new talent into the business, acquiring existing offices and supporting the expansion of existing franchisees. We expect these investments to bear fruit in 2025 and 2026 and to further strengthen our market position."
Shares in M Winkworth were up 1.5% to 197.95 pence in London on Wednesday afternoon.
By Michael Hennessey, Alliance News reporter
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